Rings
by Lela-of-Bast
Summary: Sandry, Briar, Tris, and Daja go through a cave to find themselves in another land. Can they help these strangers and find a way home? Spoilers to WotE. LOTRCOM Crossover.
1. The Cave

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**Rings  
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Chapter One: The Cave  
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Number 6 Cheeseman Street  
Summersea, Emelan  
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There was always something going on at Number 6 Cheeseman Street. Sometimes a passerby would see a little glass dragon flitting around, or a stray vine waving out a window. Anyone who lived in the neighborhood would have thought these occurrences everyday affairs, for Number 6 Cheeseman Street was the fulltime home of three young mages, and the part-time home of their foster sister.

The four mages had been friends for ten years, ever since the mage Nikalren Goldeye had brought them to Winding Circle Temple to learn to use their unique magics. They had lived at a cottage called Discipline, mothered by Dedicates Lark and Rosethorn, until they were old enough to set out on their own adventures.

Trisana Chandler was a weather witch. Sometimes she could be seen on the roof of the house, reveling in a rainstorm or gazing into the wind. Tris was a short, plump young woman. She wore her red hair in a great many braids, all varied in size, and pinned back in a heavy silk net. Anyone who knew her knew that the braids were her unique way of controlling her powers. Her eyes were the color of a stormy sea. They were usually hidden behind tinted spectacles, which also masked most of her freckles.

At twenty, Briar Moss was the oldest of the bunch. His magic was with plants. Tall and lean with glossy black hair and jade eyes, Briar caught the attention of many a girl, though his housemates seemed to be immune to his charms. The handsome young man sported bronze skin, broad shoulders, and a sensitive face. At first glance, Briar's wrists and hands looked to be covered with colorful tattoos. The flowers and vines were actually living beneath his skin, growing and changing, the results of a childhood experiment with vegetable dyes.

Until she was orphaned and came to Winding Circle, Daja Kisubo was a Trader. She was tall and broad shouldered, and so well suited to her work as a blacksmith. Her magic was with metals and fire, and the palm and back of her left hand was covered in a sort of living metal, the last remnant of her Trader staff. Her dark hair was sectioned off into little braids, which she wore pinned behind her neck.

Sandrilene fa Toren was the house's part-time resident. Sandry's uncle, Duke Vedris IV was the ruler of Emelan, and she lived at Duke's Citadel to look after him and his household. At eighteen years old, Sandry was a beauty. Her long brown hair was silky and smooth, and she liked to wear it neatly braided and pinned. The girl's eyes were kind and brown, and her clothes were always immaculate. Sandry was a stitch witch; her magic dealt with cloth and thread.

On this particular afternoon, Sandry was sitting in Briar's workroom. She'd spent the morning avoiding her uncle's sons. Both of them were bleat-brained, and though Sandry herself didn't believe it, it was widely rumored that the Duke would change his will and leave her as his heir. So Sandry went to visit her former student, Pasco Alcalon, who was now in the Provost's Guards.

When she had exhausted that activity, Sandry continued on to the home of her brother and sisters, though they all seemed to be busy working at their own tasks.

_Left_.

Briar was working with his _shakkans_. He had sold two of them, and was trying to get them ready for their new homes.

_Right_.

However Sandry was distracting. She was unoccupied at the moment, but for a gold chain with a little emerald bobble at the end. It was the kind of jewelry Briar knew only a bag would own.

_Left. Right_.

Sandry was intent on swinging the necklace back and forth. She'd been at it for the better part of an hour. The effect of the shiny metal was giving Briar a headache.

_Left-Right. Left-Right._

Briar groaned. He reached out and grabbed the necklace from Sandry's hands, stopping it.

"What?" Sandry bristled.

"Eight-nine," Briar began. "You've swung that thing back and forth eighty-nine times. Why don't you find something better to do?"

"I was under the impression that there would be something exciting to do here," Sandry said loftily. "With Uncle's sons visiting, I'm bored to tears at Duke's Citadel. Forgive me if I thought my own brother and sisters would entertain me."

"Some of us have to work for a living, Duchess," he snapped, coaxing a little bend in a young tree.

"You don't either," Sandry mumbled, swinging the pendant again. Briar grabbed the necklace and placed it on the far side of his table.

"Then I've found a hobby I enjoy. Go get some of your blasted embroidery or something," he said shortly.

"Briar, please? It's lovely outside. Let's go riding for a little while. I haven't gotten much fresh air since we returned from Namorn."

"Fine," Briar relented. "If you can pry Daja away from the forge, and Tris out of her library, I will go hiking with you, silly girl."

Sandry leaped up and kissed his cheek. Briar waved her off, and Sandry left the room.

"Finally, some peace," he said to his plants.

_Thank you!_ Sandry called through their magical bond. Briar groaned again and got back to work.

It took some convincing on Daja's side, but Sandry did manage to get both her sisters away from their afternoon activities. Tris readily put aside her book, claiming that she could use a break.

_I win, Master Moss_, Sandry called as she saddled his horse for him. _Come along._

The four rode carefully out of the city. They set a leisurely pace, intending to thoroughly enjoy their ride. Sandry led them out to the beach, galloping at a steady pace. She was grinning, and even Briar had to admit that this was a good idea. Tris trotted along happily, the glass dragon, Chime, sitting on her lap.

When they saw all the shells that littered the ground, they dismounted, walking and collecting pretty pieces of glass. They kept their boots on; the water was too cold to go barefoot.

"Evvy would like this one," Briar said, thinking of his former student as he held up a black-and-white shell that looked like a cat's paw.

Daja reached down and collected a big handful of sea foam, putting her nose close to it.

"Heavenly! I love this smell," she said leisurely. "It makes me think of all the summers I spent on Third Ship Kisubo when I was a kid." Daja used the slang word Briar had taught her for "children." She bent down to sniff the sea foam, but suddenly a hand pushed her head down. Daja looked up, wearing a moustache and beard of foam. Sandry was grinning, trying to appear innocent.

_I'll get you,_ Daja told her. The four seemed to forget that they were no longer children as they raced down the beach, Chime fluttering about them. They splashed water, foam, and sand at each other, conversing inside their heads all the while. It felt like the old days.

So much like the old days, in fact, that none of them noticed how far they'd gotten until they raced into a cavern. Their laughter died down a little, and Sandry pulled out the light crystal that the others had made for her.

"You don't need that," Daja said, looking further into the cave. Around a bend, there was a steady glow. Without warning, the light surged around the four mages, covering them so completely that they didn't even see each other. Wind rushed about their ears, and they felt dizzy, but within a second it was all over.

Daja's sight recovered from the bright lights faster than that of the others. They were standing in a dense forest. Tris, who had pulled up her spectacles and was rubbing her eyes, heard a voice on a breeze.

"_Look Frodo. It's Mr. Bilbo's trolls."_

_Where are we?_ Briar asked through their magical connection.

_Not in Emelan, that's for sure_, Daja said.

_Go back through the cave!_ Briar ordered.

_We can't. It's gone!_ Tris retorted.

"Mr. Frodo? He's going cold!" It was the same voice Tris had heard before.

_What was that?_ Daja asked uncertainly.

_There's a group of people nearby; I saw them on the wind. _Tris said. _There's a man and four children- no that's not right. They're little men. They look like they're our age, but they're not much taller than Little Bear. The man is armed, and one of the little ones is hurt._

Slowly the four mages stepped forward. They stepped around a large rock and saw three large shapes.

Sandry screamed.

Each one was a large body with limbs that reached from their shoulders to the ground. Their faces were broad and mean, open in growls and war cries. But what Sandry didn't realized was that they were still.

_It's just stone, Sandry!_ Daja insisted. _Like the statue of Duke Vedris in Summersea._

_Hush!_ Tris said shortly, disentangling Chime from the hood of her jacket. The group of people looked up in horror.

"Quiet! They're after us!" cried one of the small people. The man strode over to Sandry in two long steps.

"Quiet, girl, for pity's sake!" he said, putting a hand over Sandry's mouth.

"Take your hands off of me! My uncle will have you arrested!"

"Now may not be the best time to go all noble," Briar insisted, stepping between his friend and the stranger.

"You'll find it's quite wasted on me," the man said. "Who are you, to find us in the woods?"

"I'm Briar Moss, a green mage," Briar said diplomatically. "These are my sisters, Sandry, Daja, and Tris. They're mages too. We come from Summersea in Emelan. We don't want to hurt you. We don't even know where we are."

"There's no Emelan in Middle Earth," the man said. "How do I know you're not making it up?"

"We have mages's medallions from Winding Circle temple, where we studied," Daja offered, taking hers out. The man looked at the piece metal.

"This will have to do for proof. You will come with us to Rivendell. We must be quick."

"I won't be ordered about by a stranger," Sandry said loftily. "What's your name?"

"Strider!" Three of the little men were gathered around the other. He was gasping for air, obviously hurt. The man turned to his companions.

"I guess I'll call you Strider," Sandry called after him, pride wounded. Her foster siblings ignored her watching the little men.

"What happened?" Briar queried.

"Is he going to die?" asked one of the little people.

"He's passing into the shadow world," Strider said. "He'll soon become a Wraith."

The wounded young man gasped in pain. Briar went to his side.

_What's a wraith?_ Sandry asked. _Are they worse than those horrid trolls?_

_I don't know Sandry. Calm down_, Daja said, putting an arm around her friend's shoulders.

_How do we know we can trust him?_ Tris asked coolly.

_What choice do we have? _Daja pointed out._ We could wander in these woods forever, or we could follow the man out. Once we're in Rivenfell, or wherever he said, we'll try to find a way home._

"Sam, do you know the Athelas plant?" Strider said to one of the short men. Sam looked confused, so Strider used another name for the herb. "Kingsfoil. It may help slow the poisoning."

"I know the one," Briar said, trotting off into the woods with the man called Sam. Strider bent down over his injured companion again. From what seemed like out of no where, a blade rested at his throat.

"What's this? A ranger, caught off his guard?" a female voice said, almost teasingly. This woman was beautiful, with long brown hair and blue eyes. Her face was smooth and slender. She dressed in a gray riding gown and carried a fine bowed long sword. Her most unique characteristic was the graceful ways that her ears came to points.

The man smiled briefly at her.

"Arwen. We are in need of your help," he said plainly. She knelt beside the wounded man, whispering to him in a language that the four mages didn't understand.

_She's an elf!_ Tris sounded triumphant. _I've read about them, but I didn't think they really existed. Do you realize what a find this is? I mean if it-_

_Later, Coppercurls_, Briar interrupted. The elf stood, getting the small man onto her horse. She and Strider had a quiet argument about who would ride with the boy, and in the end, Arwen galloped away.

"What now?" asked Sam.

"Now we walk," Strider said. He turned to the four mages. "And you tell us more."

"You first," Sandry said. She looked down at Sam. "I don't mean to be rude, but what are you?"

"We're hobbits," said one of the hobbits.

"From the Shire," added the last hobbit.

_Hobbits from the Shire_, Tris told her friends. _Those I haven't heard of._

"I'm Samwise Gamgee," Sam said. He was the plumpest of the hobbits, and his curls were a honey-brown color. "And these two blockheads are Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregrin Took."

"Merry and Pippin," Merry clarified, pointing to himself first and then his friend. Merry was a little taller than Pippin, and his hair was blond, while Pippin sported more of a reddish-brown color.

"And you are?" Pippin asked, taking Sandry's arm.

"I'm Sandrilene fa Toren of Summersea," Sandry said, gazing oddly at the hobbit beside her. "I have magic with threads and yarns."

"That's very impressive," Merry said, taking her other arm. He offered her a small sack. "Mushroom?"

Sandry looked back at her friends. _Help?!_

_As far as I'm concerned, you brought this upon yourself, Duchess_, Briar said, snickering as he passed by with Sam.

"How far is it to Rivendell?" Tris asked, falling in beside Daja.

"Three days or so," Strider answered passively.

Over the next few days, Strider lead them through the woods, and up a steep incline. The ranger was quiet and thoughtful, always listening to the world around him. He was the exact opposite of the hobbits. They chattered, though Sam seemed lost without Mr. Frodo, the injured hobbit.

Merry and Pippin made a grand show of helping Sandry along. They did whatever they could for her, offering hands to steady her or food to fill her up. Briar, Tris, and Daja found this highly amusing, though Sandry was less than thrilled.

By morning on the fourth day, no one was cheerful. The hobbits were always hungry, and they constantly pestered Strider to stop for meals. Sandry confided to her friends that she could not bear to spend ten more minutes with lovesick hobbits. Just when she thought she would snap at Merry if he offered another mushroom, the ranger stopped abruptly.

"We are there," Strider announced. They travelers overlooked a ravine filled with trees of all colors. Nestled on the mountainside was a little village. The white wood forms were elegant, open structures, making it look like a fairytale setting.

"It's beautiful," Sandry whispered.

"It is," Strider agreed. "Come, it's but an hour from here."

Strider was right about this. Within the hour, they passed through the gates of the village.

A tall elf with dark hair and flowing red robes greeted them.

"Welcome to Rivendell," he said with a smile.

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**AN:** Welcome to my new story! I hope you've enjoyed the first chapter. I didn't want to give away the suprise, so I put my author's note at the end this time. I really enjoyed writing this today. I was watching "The Fellowship of the Ring," and it just sort of popped into my head. I'm going strictly by the LOTR movies, because I haven't read all of the books. So please don't review to tell me that it happened this way in the book- because it happened this way in the movies. I'm assuming more people have seen the movies than read the books, anyways.

Also the scene where they go into the cave-- kind of seems like Narnia, right? Well, I've been reading "Prince Caspian" in anticipation for the new movie, and it is going to be good. I can't wait!

That being said, I'd love feedback on the story. There are ways that the Circle can help the Fellowship, and I intend to bring them out in future chapters. Do you like Sandry's first admirers? Is anyone out of character? Do you have suggestions, or even questions? Please let me know.

**Disclaimer:** I do not claim rights to any of the characters of Tamora Pierce's books. I also have no claim on any of the characters from the Lord of the Rings, even Legolas. I'm just taking them out to play for awhile. How else am I supposed to amuse myself?  
Disclaimer applies to all chapters.


	2. The Council

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**Rings  
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Chapter Two: The Council  
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Rivendell, Middle Earth  
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Tris heard Briar's feet hit the ground as he jumped from a tree. He'd spent the morning climbing through the many-colored maples and pines that surrounded Rivendell. The elf city, though very beautiful, was a laid back place; a place to rest. Daja had done just that- slept, while Sandry's time was spent fussing over the elvish clothes that the mages had been lent, making sure that the garments fit to her standards.

Elrond, the elf-lord of Rivendell and Lady Arwen's father, had greeted them with grandeur and luxury. Lord Elrond did wish to speak with the four mages and hear their story, but he insisted that they take a day of rest first. They were each given a grand, airy room so they could rest; all the mage's rooms opened onto a common balcony. Tris felt right at home in the open architecture. Here, she was always close to the elements that she loved.

Tris sighed blissfully. She was sitting on the edge of a stone railing. From her perch she could see over the valley. A river and waterfalls ran at the bottom, and there were trees in reds and greens everywhere. She pushed the spectacles that blocked the images on the wind further up on her nose. Tris was grateful that she had been wearing those particular spectacles when she and her siblings had been pulled through the cave, and that she had tucked her regular ones away in a pocket.

Their journey still puzzled them all. What had brought them to this strange place called Middle Earth? On the way to Rivendell, the ranger, Strider, and the three hobbits had explained that they were being followed because of something that Mr. Frodo carried. They didn't say exactly what hunted their friend, but the mages could tell that they were terrified. Even quiet and observant Strider seemed to have his hackles raised.

Tris turned from her thoughts and Briar climbed down, and Sandry and Daja joined them outside. Sandry was dressed in a fine elvish gown. It was a deep shade of purple, with long, flowing sleeves, and it fit Sandry perfectly, showing off her curves. Her hair had been brushed until it shone, and she let it hand loosely down her back. Sandry looked gorgeous. Tris was dressed similarly, but she didn't so the style justice as her sister did.

_Maybe I can find something fitting for me leftover from those trolls_, Tris thought to herself. Daja wore breeches and a leathery tunic. Elvish symbols were pressed into the top, and the hems were beaded. She had her trader staff, and was doing a meditating practice dance within a shield of her power.

Briar wore a fresh green shirt untucked over his own breeches. He kept tending to the plants around him, looking happier than Tris had seen him in years.

"It's so pretty here," Sandry said, resting her elbows on Tris's railing as she gazed at the canyon. Chime landed beside her. The little glass dragon had spent the better part of their time in Rivendell locked away in Sandry and Tris's rooms. They were afraid that Chime would steal jewelry and other such "snacks" from their hosts. That would not do at all.

"All the plants are happy," Briar said as a stray vine reached out to him. "They say that the elves treat them well."

Voices came from around the corner of the balcony. Tris used a breeze to better hear them.

"The hobbits are coming," she told her siblings. "Merry and Pippin."

"Cat dirt!" Sandry hissed, turning abruptly and flying into her room. "Tell them I'm asleep."

Her door closed just as Merry and Pippin rounded the corner. Daja finished her pattern dance and let down her shield.

"G'morning to ya," Merry said.

"Morning," Daja replied, stretching her long arms above her head.

"Mr. Frodo's on the mend. In a few days he has to go to a secret council. But Lord Elrond wanted to see you," Merry continued.

"He sent us to fetch you," Pippin added. "Special messengers we are." His friend looked at him.

"He was just trying to get rid of you, Pip, so he could talk to Gandalf alone."

"Oh," Pippin said, a look of confusion crossing his face.

"Who's Gandalf?" Tris asked.

"The Grey wizard," Merry said. "Very powerful. Makes good fireworks."

"Did Lord Elrond want us immediately?" Briar asked.

"I'm not sure," Pippin said. "Where is Lady Sandry?" The two hobbit faces brightened. They chattered at Daja and Briar, the latter of whom looked very frustrated.

_Sandry, get out here before Briar wraps these hobbits in plant cocoons,_ Tris called.

_No,_ came the stubborn reply.

_But they wrote you poems and a song,_ said Daja, who had been listening to the halflings' further prattle. _I'll bet they even compared you to food. You know, "cheeks red as apples, lips like cinnamon…"_

_Aren't you at all flattered? _Tris added. The door opened, and a reluctant Sandry stepped out, glaring at her sisters. The hobbits swarmed her, declaring her beauty and grace. Among apples and cinnamon, Sandry had also been contrasted to potatoes, figs, onions, and plums. It took the mages ten minutes to get the hobbits to show them the way to Lord Elrond's study.

Tris and her siblings stopped at the open doorway. It seemed that the elf lord was having an argument with a man who dressed head to toe in grey. Even his long flowing beard and wild hair was grey. Power blazed from him in Tris's magical sight.

"… evil was allowed to endure," Elrond said. "Isildur kept the Ring. The line of kings is broken. There's no strength left in the world of men. They're scattered, divided, leaderless."

"There is one who could unite them. One who could reclaim the throne of Gondor," the grey one retorted.

"He turned from that path long ago. He has chosen exile," Lord Elrond said. At this moment, Briar cleared his throat. The two strangers turned and beckoned the mages into the room.

"Welcome visitors from afar," Elrond said. "This is Gandalf the Grey, a wizard of great power." Gandalf looked sternly at each of them. When Tris's turn came, she felt as if he looked into her soul.

"You are not different from me," he said. "You are blessed with the magic of wizards."

"We're mages. You know nothing about us," Briar said, almost rudely. The wizard looked at Briar rebukingly.

"Your magic is ambient. Your sisters' work with metals, weaving, and weather," Gandalf said, motioning to each of the girls as he named their magics. "Your field, Boy, is plants. You've been to war; seen horrible things. You've had many teachers, only one student, and may young lady-friends. You saved a woman from death-lands, and you've taken lives, all within your magic."

Briar looked down, too proud to show his surprise to the wizard. Tris bristled.

"How did you know all that?" the red-head demanded.

"That was what I could read from his eyes. I'm sure that there is more, if I had time to delve into the minds of young 'mages'."

_It's like arguing with Niko,_ Briar said to Tris, naming their former teacher.

_Yes, it makes your head spin_, she agreed.

"I think we stand corrected, Master Gandalf," Briar said.

"Please tell us more about where you came from," Lord Elrond guided.

"We're from Summersea in Emelan," Sandry said. "My uncle, Duke Vedris IV is the overlord of all Emelan." _I hope he's not too worried about us!_ She told her siblings.

"The four of us learned to control our magics at Winding Circle temple, and we earned our mage's medallions at young ages."

"Emelan," Gandalf said slowly and thoughtfully. Slow and thoughtful seemed to be the wizard's way. "Oh, yes. One of the kingdoms of Outer Earth."

"You know it?" Daja asked in surprise.

"It's very old knowledge, all but lost to us in Middle Earth. We are just one of the three spheres of the earth. Inner earth was destroyed eons ago, but Outer Earth still surrounds us here. Once travel between the spheres was common, but now… it never happens."

"Well it happened to us," Briar said. "Where are we?"

"This is the elven strong hold of Rivendell," Elrond said. "And you come to us at perilous times."

"I believe there was an ancient prophecy," Gandalf said, still thinking. "'Four leaves fall from trees unseen,

Come to the land that is between,

To play a part in a mighty quest

And put the fate of the land to rest."

"I thought it referred to the hobbits, but now my heart tells me that you- mages have some role to play in the journey of the Ring."

"I'm not sure I understand," Sandry said. "What ring?"

"Thousands of years ago the Dark Lord Sauron forged nineteen rings, powerful wonderful rings. Three were given to the elves, seven to the dwarves, and nine to men. But in secret, Sauron made another, more powerful ring; a Ring that would control all the others," Elrond explained. "In a great battle, a man called Isildur took the Ring from Sauron, but instead of destroying the Ring, and the master along with it, Isildur was swayed by the power of the thing, and he kept it." Gandalf picked up the story.

"After Isildur died, the Ring spent many years in obscurity, in the mountains with a creature called Gollum. The Ring took the chance to find a new bearer, a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, and he passed it on to his nephew Frodo."

"Sauron wants to take back what is his," Elrond continued. "He will never stop chasing it. The Ring must be taken back to Mount Doom and destroyed."

"You want us to do this?" Daja asked.

"No, that is the responsibility of the folks of Middle Earth. But I do not believe that you will be able to return home until you've done what you were brought here to do," Gandalf explained.

"But you don't know what that is?" Briar asked skeptically. The wizard's eyebrows twitched.

"No."

"A council will be meeting in three days' time to decide what to do with the Ring," Elrond said. He glanced at Gandalf. "We, of course, will be persuading them in the right direction."

"So in the meantime, we just wait?" Tris clarified.

"Yes," the elf said.

…..

So they waited. Sometimes they explored the village. They saw the shards of Narsil, the blade that Isildur used to cut the Ring from Sauron's hand. Legend had it that the blade would one day be remade, and returned to the true king of men.

Tris watched many pictures in the wind. Most of them were sorts of people: short, bearded dwarves, tall blond elves, and a few stuffy looking men. Tris assumed that these were the members of the 'secret' council that Lord Elrond had called.

The hobbits chattered around the mages, and they had the pleasure being introduced to both Bilbo and Frodo Baggins. Tris was fascinated by Biblo's book: There and Back Again, a Hobbit's Tale. In the space of an hour, she read it from cover to cover, and was therefore able to explain to her siblings how the Ring had come to Bilbo.

During the passing days, Briar spied Arwen and Strider kissing on a dark bridge. Sandry found this intriguing.

"A common man with a elven princess?" she said. "I'd wager her father is none to happy."

"If he even knows," Briar agreed.

The three days passed quickly. While the Council met, Sandry, Daja, Tris, and Briar were made to wait in a nearby room. If all went as planned, they would be consulted at the end.

Tris listened on the wind for awhile, but she could only pick up little pieces of the conversation.

"_Strangers of distant lands, friends of old, you've been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor…_

_In a dream, I saw the eastern sky grow dark…A voice was crying, "Your doom is near at hand. Isildur's bane is found. Isildur's bane…_

Tris heard the wizard's voice speak in a tongue that made her feel seasick. The sky began to grow dark, thunder rolled, and nearby lightning struck. Tris's siblings ducked away from the ledge, but Tris reveled in the brief storm. It was over nearly as quickly as it began.

_This is no mere Ranger._

_Aragorn? This is Isildur's heir?_

"Strider is the heir to Gondor!" Tris told Daja.

"That explains a lot," she replied.

_You have only one choice. The ring must be destroyed…_. _it must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came._

_One does not simply walk into Mordor. It's black gates are guarded by more than just orcs…Not with ten thousand ment could you do this. It is folly!_

_Have you heard nothing Lord Elrond has said? The ring must be destroyed! _

_And I suppose you think you're the one to do it!_

_And if we fail, what then? What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?_

_I will be dead before I see the ring in the hands of an elf!_

_Never trust an elf!_

"What's happening, Coppercurls?" Briar asked.

"They're all arguing," Tris said disgustedly. She had half a mind to send some lightning over to hasten their decision. "Some want to destroy the Ring, but there's at least one that wants to use it against the enemy."

She went back to listening.

_I will take it! I will take it. I will take the ring to Mordor. _

_If by my life or death I can protect you, I will. You have my sword._

_And you have my bow._

_And my axe._

"Mr. Frodo volunteered to take the Ring to Mordor," Tris relayed. "Now they all want to agree and volunteer their services to help him. This sounds like trouble."

"So we're traveling with a group. It'll make protecting the Ringbearer that much easier," Daja pointed out.

_Hey! Mr. Frodo's not going anywhere without me._

_Hey! We're coming too. You'd have to send us home tied up in a sack to stop us._

_Anyway, you need people of intelligence on this sort of mission…quest…thing._

_Well that rules you out, Pip. _

"Well Sandry will be pleased. The hobbits are coming along for the ride. All four of them," Tris said teasingly.

"Pox rot it!" Sandry said quietly.

"I don't know what you have against the poor defenseless little things," Briar said, joining in on Tris's game.

_Nine companions. So be it. You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring. Send in the Circle._

"They're coming for us," Tris told her siblings. A moment later, an elf appeared to lead them to the Council. They felt all eyes upon them as they entered the area. The nine members of the Fellowship stood together.

"People of Middle Earth, these four wizards are from a distant land in Outer Earth. Each of them is marked by deep magic. They are here, according to ancient prophecy, to help our cause."

"How do we know that the prophecy was referring to them?" a man said. The four looked at the man who had spoken. Tris recognized his voice; he was the one who wanted to use the Ring to protect his land.

"Boromir," Strider said warningly.

"How do we know they even have magic?" Boromir said, ignoring Strider. Tris immediately decided to show him their magic. She summoned a wind to blow around the Council room. She glanced at her siblings. Each of them had set their jaws in concentration. A light drizzle began to fall, as shirt cuffs began to gradually unweave themselves. Daja called melted metal that was once rings and circlets into her palms. It crawled and danced over her skin. Briar called his eager plant friends to tickle and weave around the council members.

The four let this continue for a brief minute, then suddenly the clothes were restored, jewelry given back, and natural elements returned to the earth. Everything went back to normal.

Though most looked bewildered, a smile played on more than one set of lips. Boromir looked something a kin to terrified.

"Do you believe now?" Gandalf pressed. Boromir only nodded, sinking into his chair. Tris gloated privately.

"Any further objections?" Elrond asked. No one spoke.

"Very well. The Fellowship and the Circle will set out four days hence," Elrond said. "My heart tells me you will face many a danger. Rest now and be ready."

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**AN:** Well, I hate that it took this long, but here's chapter two. This story really is fun to write. The chapters are longer than I usually do, too, though I don't think anyone will complain about that. For those of you who read, thanks a bunch! I appreciate you.

**Review Replies:**  
**Darking Girl:** Thanks for the review. I enjoyed that one. You sounded a little like Sméagol! **x17SkmBrdchiczxx:** Thanks for the review. Yours are always a pleasure! **Kirril:** Thanks for reading! **EgyptianFireFly:** They probably could have helped more. I guess I just kind of let Briar take over, while the other three were kind of shocked, because that chapter centered on Briar. Thanks for reading!

More to come, soon hopefully!


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